Feds: Watervliet man defrauded of $15K in lottery scam

Published 2:33 pm, Tuesday, September 1, 2015

ALBANY — A Watervliet man in his 80s received a $15,000 check for a portion of nearly $150,000 defrauded by Jamaican scammers, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement reported Tuesday.

In the fall of 2013, the victim was notified he had won a lottery prize and later was contacted by a man who told him he owed taxes and other expenses ranging from $5,000 to $80,000 to receive his prize. The flim-flam artists cheated him out of nearly $150,000 before his son reported the scam to law enforcement, ICE said.

Homeland Security Investigations special agents, along with the U.S. Postal Inspections Service, Pioneer Bank, and Bank of America, identified a bank account where some of the funds were deposited and froze the funds.

The man received a check on Aug. 17 for $15,000. The criminal investigation is ongoing.

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission warned that consumers lose billions of dollars a year to cross-border financial crimes such as telemarketing fraud. One of the most common types is the lottery or sweepstakes scam, which typically involve fraudulent telemarketers identifying themselves as lawyers, customs officials or lottery company representatives.

A survey conducted by American Association of Retired Persons found that 90 percent of respondents said they are aware of consumer fraud, yet two-thirds said it was hard to spot fraud when it is happening. The survey also shows that elderly victims find it difficult to end telephone conversations, even when they say they are not interested. Also, the elderly may be reluctant to report the incident for fear of losing financial independence if their families discover the fraud.

Consumers should report any incidences of telemarketing fraud to the FTC at 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357) or online at http://www.ftc.gov Click on "Consumer Complaint? Report it to the FTC."